Relying solely on a laptop screen for coding is uncommon among developers, as external monitors often enhance comfort and productivity. The decision then arises: should one opt for a single ultrawide monitor or dual standard 16:9 monitors? Let's explore this choice together.
Two competitors
Developers, when choosing their coding setup, usually hesitate between those two:
Setup 1: A single wide 21:9 screen
A single wide screen is a very large monitor that usually has crazy resolutions like 2560*1080, 3440*1440 or even 5120*2160. Functionning as a single continuous display, it allows for multiple windows to be viewed simultaneously or for individual windows to appear larger. This goes well with Windows 11's layout menu, as it allows you to reorganize windows more easily.
Setup 2: Two standard 16:9 monitors
Adding an extra 16:9 monitor to an already existing one allows developers to see twice as many windows at once than usual, which is priceless while coding. For example, if you are a web developer, it could be interesting to have your code on one screen, and your browser, on the other screen. It is better than pressing alt+tab for half an hour in order to find the right window.
The big winner is...
As you know, there is no "winner" as everyone has different needs, and some people will find two monitors better, while others will prefer one wide screen. I am still going to give you my opinion: I would much rather use a wide screen than two screens. Why ? Let me explain...
1- Better vision
Vision is something tricky, and a bad position can quickly cause headache, or eyestrain. Our eyes naturally focus most comfortably on central areas where both eyes converge seamlessly.
Here is the deal with two screens: you have only two ways of setting them, and both can cause health problems:
- On the left: your eye resting position is between the monitors, so you always have to look either on the left or the right side, which will force one eye to focus more than the other. Working like this during an extended period can cause eyestrain.
- On the right, your main screen does focus both of your eyes and is positioned in the middle, but your other screen requires to turn your head, or force on your left eye even more than on the first case. This can cause eyestrain or even neck discomfort.
As you can see, with a single wide monitor, you can reorganize your windows as you wish, so you can reduce eyestrain by putting them in the center, and you still have enough space to let other less important windows on the side.
2- The tiling window manager
As I am using a tiling window manager, my windows automatically divide and reorganize in order them to all appear on the screen at the same time, so what's better than a bigger monitor that can fit even more windows ?
But I can do exactly the same thing on two monitors, right ? Well yes, but what if I temporarily need my code editor to take the whole screen, to display more code at once ? I can resize my window for it to take 2/3 of my screen for example. Or I can even make it full screen while I need it.
A tiling window manager, even if you spend some time configuring it, will improve your efficiency, especially as a developer. I must agree that a wide screen with a floating window manager is not as powerful, and to be honest, it would bother me to reorganize the windows by myself every time I open a new one. That is why I think tiling window managers and wide screens get along so well.
Conclusion
Even if this fight has no clear winner, I have my preferences and they go for the wide screen, which allows me to reorganize my windows as I need them to be, while using a tiling window manager, and reduces eyestrain. But remember that everyone has different needs, and it is only a matter of point of view: choose the setup that suits your needs best ! And you, which setup would you choose ? Tell us in the comments !
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